Postal disorder
Town centres , Issue 1676 COMMUNITIES secretary Steve Reed has set much, ahem, store by rejuvenating high streets across the UK, such as through a "Pride of Place" initiative run with the devolved governments of Wales and Scotland. Alas, one public body hasn't got the memo on supporting town centres. Yep, it's the Post Office.

A Post Office branch at the heart of a small town centre can provide a focal point and help neighbouring businesses, which was the function served by the one in Stornoway (pop. 7,000) on the Isle of Lewis in the Outer Hebrides. It was located a couple of hundred metres from the harbour and close to the shops, library and other amenities.

Devil in the retail
Until last year, this was one of around 100 remaining Crown offices directly owned and run by Post Office Ltd. As with so many others, as part of the organisation's drive to eliminate all Crown offices, it became a franchise run by a company called Universal Office Equipment Ltd. Then in April the Post Office announced the branch was to be taken over by the Co-op.

This might sound a better fit, but supermarkets prefer out-of-town locations with large car parks to town centres. And so it is with Stornoway Co-op, on the edge of town and not within convenient walking distance of the centre. Locals are objecting but suspect a stitch-up that will not be reversed, as the public body that could do most for town centres resolutely does most to damage them.

Alas Smith & Jones
Across the country, the historic decision to franchise hundreds of post offices to WH Smith is wreaking even greater carnage now the high street chain has been taken over by private equity group Modella and disastrously rebranded as TGJones.

The Guardian reported recently that the company is renegotiating its franchise agreements to make it easier to close the 60 post office branches it hosts in town centres.

Those in stores that TGJones is closing under a cost-cutting drive are already on their way out. Last week TGJones announced it was closing its shop in the West Orchards shopping centre in Coventry in June – leaving the city centre with no post office. A manager at the shopping centre told the BBC that since the post office was "a massive footfall driver", this was "a disaster".

Capture audience
Meanwhile, in shafting-former-sub-postmaster news, the Post Office is contesting convictions referred to the Court of Appeal where the cases relied on a dodgy computer system used in the 1990s called Capture. This pre-dated the infamous Horizon system and is linked to around 30 cases being considered by the Criminal Cases Review Commission.

It isn't just the victims who are disgusted. Computer Weekly obtained a letter sent by chair of the Horizon Compensation Advisory Board Chris Hodges – across whose desk many an appalling miscarriage has passed – to Post Office chairman Nigel Railton telling him that his stance "causes fresh harm and insult" to sub-postmasters, and that the Post Office should tell the appeal court it will not object to appeals.